Days after the October 7 Hamas terrorist attacks, a Massachusetts school district known for pushing diversity, equity, and inclusion was accused of supporting white supremacy because of its response to the attacks, according to emails viewed by The Daily Wire.
On October 13, a sixth grade science teacher at Vassal Lane Upper School in the Cambridge Public School District accused the administration of supporting “white colonists” and criticized them for using the word “terrorist,” according to an email obtained by Parents Defending Education and shared with The Daily Wire. The teacher, who is a self-described “white Jewish educator,” was responding to a message that went out on October 12 called “Israel-Hamas War.”
“In your message yesterday, you communicated that CPS [Cambridge Public Schools] places more value on white lives than brown Muslim lives,” the teacher wrote. “A few thoughts on word choice: The word terrorist brings deeply racialized connotations. You conspicuously did not mention Palestine or Gaza, therefore not including any of our community with connections to those places and people in your extension of care. Israelis are ‘innocent civilians’ but Palestinians simply do not exist.”
While acknowledging that there were “acts of violence” being committed against Israelis, the teacher attacked “white parents,” saying the district only cared when white people were being harmed.
“Your email ignored this entire picture of life for brown, Muslim Palestinians, and in doing so, told your employees, students, and the people of Cambridge that when a group of highly educated, white parents tells you to abandon your values of racial justice and human dignity for all, you will do so. You have told us that white lives matter and all lives matter, rather than naming the brown lives that matter,” the email said.
The teacher added that the district had chosen “white supremacy over human rights” and that the “current crisis is clearly a humanitarian one caused by white nationalist rhetoric.”
Erika Sanzi, the director of outreach for Parents Defending Education, told The Daily Wire that it was concerning that a teacher in the district was going after parents because of their skin color.
“Like so many districts, Cambridge employs fanatical people who think that condemning Hamas for the October 7th massacre is white supremacy and can’t abide parents who stand up for Israel if they are white,” Sanzi said. “This seems disqualifying for a public employee who works with other people’s children.”
The Daily Wire asked Cambridge Public Schools to provide a copy of the October 12 message that prompted the anger of the teacher as well as a group of Muslim parents in the district.
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A previous statement from District Superintendent Victoria Greer on October 9 only made generic comments related to the attack without referencing Hamas.
“I want to take a moment to acknowledge the conflict that has unfolded between Israel and Palestine,” Greer wrote. “Our thoughts and hearts are with the Israeli and Palestinian people, particularly those near and far who have been impacted by the unrest.”
On October 11, the district’s communications director wrote in an email that they needed to be more explicit in their condemnation of Hamas in their future messages, sharing a tweet from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) that condemned both Hamas and Israel.
Other emails from teachers in the district are critical of Greer’s comments related to the October 7 attacks. The Daily Wire asked the district if they had altered their messaging in any way after the criticism from teachers.
On Wednesday, Greer was given a 90-day notice to resign by the Cambridge School Committee. Greer has been facing criticism from the community over her handling of hiring and alleged toxicity, according to The Harvard Crimson.
In the wake of the Hamas terror attack, radical activist groups across the country have worked to get educators to integrate anti-American, pro-Palestinian, and anti-colonialist resources from a plethora of leftist organizations into their classrooms.